Not so long ago Windows Phone came to replace Windows Mobile. I guess all of us remember that when Windows Mobile was still popular, Microsoft created the Windows Mobile Marketplace for distributing its apps and games. Now App Hub reports that the days of the store are numbered.
The EdgeWay Software developers received letters saying that starting from July 15 they will not be able to publish new applications in the Windows Mobile Marketplace, though the apps that are already published can still be purchased by users, and the money will be transferred to the developers as before. Wieser Software Lt also confirmed this information.
If the Windows Mobile Marketplace is really closed, what will Microsoft get from it? What reasons or benefits can be hidden in this decision? Perhaps Microsoft is trying to encourage the developers to start making more apps for Windows Phone and not to waste time on the old Windows Mobile. And besides, to tell the truth, Windows Mobile Marketplace wasn’t a really successful project, since it was established rather late, when the users already had a habit of downloading software and applications from other sources.
This decision will not affect Nokia and its future Windows Phone-based smartphones anyway (on the contrary, if the developers start making more apps for WP7, the users of the upcoming WP7 Nokia devices will only benefit from it), but I guess the owners of old smartphones that run Windows Mobile OS will not be happy to hear about this…
